By / Kristi Patton
The Vancouver Fusion and Kootenay Wildcats gave a boisterous crowd their money’s worth as they battled for provincial gold.
“The atmosphere was incredible and something both teams will remeber for a long time,” said Fusion coach Pat Thibeault. “As expected, the game was played back and forth and saw both teams play hard.”
It was a fight between the top two teams in the league during the regular season and the match up would not disappoint. Over the course of the season, both teams had a win, loss and tie against each other. In the previous round-robin game, the teams were knotted at 3-3 by the final buzzer. With gold on the line, the intensity only grew.
“I feel that the game showed a great level of skill and demonstrated to the unknown eye what female hockey has to offer,” said Thibeault.
The Wildcats marched into the third period with a 2-1 lead but with six minutes left, the Fusion scored to tie the game. With that energy, the Fusion forged ahead, scoring to take the lead with about three minutes left. A late penalty offered the Wildcats the opportunity to tie the game, pulling their goalie in an attempt to score but could not finish.
The Fusion now wait to find out if they will represent the Pacific region at the first-ever national female Midget AAA tournament, the Esso Cup, in Calgary from April 19 to 25. |